


Like Any Other Word

by Pepper_Poppers



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Character Study, F/M, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Cindered Shadows DLC Spoilers, Introspection, Jealousy, Pre-Relationship, can be read as entirely platonic, spoilers for claude's backstory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-25
Updated: 2020-02-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:33:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22891060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pepper_Poppers/pseuds/Pepper_Poppers
Summary: Claude is wandering Abyss, lost in his thoughts, when he stumbles across a certain conversation taking place.Contains major spoilers for Cindered Shadows plot, as well as some of Claude's backstory! If you don’t want to see any of that just save this one for later friends
Relationships: My Unit | Byleth & Claude von Riegan, My Unit | Byleth & Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc, My Unit | Byleth/Claude von Riegan, Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc & Claude von Riegan
Comments: 16
Kudos: 115





	Like Any Other Word

**Author's Note:**

> Thinkin about how Yuri calls Byleth “friend” about 8-9 months before Claude gets to a place where he begins to call her the same… F
> 
> I've been working on a bunch of Claudeleth but took a break to run my eyes over the DLC and well. This happened
> 
> Takes place during Chapter 4 of Cindered Shadows!

If you asked Claude, this break was well-earned and much needed after making it back from the depths of Abyss alive. All of this Chalice of Beginnings and Rite of Rising business... After last moon’s debacle, he wasn’t sure he wanted to see more church-related rituals taking place any time soon. But having retrieved a treasured artifact that was supposedly capable of resurrecting lost life? Claude couldn’t help but wonder what one could achieve with that kind of inhuman power. Something worth kidnapping a cardinal for, he supposed. 

And this was just one of the many secrets Abyss held! He was itching to uncover every last one of them, if he even had enough days in his lifetime to do so. At least for now the group had some free time to spare as preparations were made to head to the chapel ruins tomorrow evening, and Claude was eager to use his time to continue familiarizing himself with Abyss. If only he could traverse it a bit more freely...

The community of Abyss was full of not only the sick and the poor who had been driven from the surface, but of Dagdans and Almyrans who called this town below the ground their home. Maybe it wasn’t all too likely, but it was possible that there were people here who could pose a threat to his cover. Claude was always prepared to deflect questions of his identity, but it was easiest so far to just avoid the gamble entirely. Learning that Balthus was keeping tabs on him had been alarming enough! Just how much had the guy managed to dig up in his effort to clear some debt? 

What a slap in the face to find this sprawling society that had formed under the surface, full of people with rich stories, but to not be able to interact with the townspeople to avoid being recognized. 

At least the Shadow Library here could offer all sorts of materials leaking lost histories and church cover-ups, from what he had heard from Linhardt. It would be safe for him to pry there. After all, books couldn’t reveal Claude’s secrets, they could only offer their own. 

As Claude made his way to the library, navigating the snaking passageways of Abyss, he passed by heaps of abandoned trash and homes the size of lockups. The infrastructure of Abyss alone spoke volumes of how its people were regarded. Same as Garreg Mach above ground, Abyss too could sum up the current state of Fódlan. 

For the people of Abyss, this was their alternative to facing even worse poverty and discrimination on the surface. They deserved so much better than to live in a crypt where all they might hold in common with one another was not being embraced above ground. Here, people could exist, but they could never flourish. They could only endure. 

Even so, seeing this town of outsiders, interacting and coexisting, reassured Claude that his dream was not unreachable. People were capable of coming together. The Abyssians had found peace and safety with one another, though that safety had been wavering as of late. There remained the facts that the underground was barely being tolerated, was discouraged from associating with the surface, and was now under threat of being purged, which reminded Claude that the world still had a great deal of change ahead of it if he wanted to see his vision through. 

Claude knew his perspective of the world was widening every day, and taking in all that Abyss had to offer would make the path to his dream that much clearer. But at the end of the day, Claude had to remember that his ambitions weren’t the focus of their work here. 

When he had first gathered the others to track someone into Abyss, Claude was prepared to turn the discovery into his moment. But the Wolves really ended up taking the reins on this one, and there was no getting that control back. They were on their home turf, and would continue playing by their rules. 

Usually this sort of issue would be something Claude could spin in his favor. He preferred having room to operate without others’ notice, and while someone else was calling the shots, he could maintain a subtle control from the sidelines. But this wasn’t the sidelines. The whole basement town had him playing catch-up.

And then, of course, there was Yuri. 

At first, Claude had felt an easy, mutual understanding form between himself and the leader of the Ashen Wolves. They operated so similarly to one another, and in some ways, interacting with Yuri felt like talking into a mirror. Just like him, Yuri kept his intentions close. Unwilling to show his hand, Yuri’s way of interacting with others around him was familiar to Claude, and naturally, he had to respect him for it. 

It was clear Yuri also had a head for strategy and delegation, although their talk earlier hadn’t left Claude entirely convinced that Yuri wasn’t hiding some other agenda. Yuri may have managed to quickly earn his respect, but no one was quick to earn his trust. 

But for all of his suspiciousness, Claude would concede that Yuri did seem somewhat... selfless in his work for the people of Abyss. 

Claude wasn’t sure he’d ever be able get a grip on that guy and his intentions, but it was more than Yuri’s opaqueness that had begun to bother him. The way Yuri interacted with Teach in particular was starting to get to Claude.

Claude would say he and Teach personally have a good dynamic, and with Yuri, it’s like he’s watching the beginnings of that dynamic play out with someone else. That shouldn’t bother him, but it did. 

Was it odd to be feeling a bit… robbed of interaction? After all, those two had only just met, while he and Teach had built rapport over the course of several moons. That seniority should count for something, right?

Claude had made so much progress breaking down Teach’s walls, and now here was Yuri, forging an easy bond between them. It felt a bit like trying to loosen a jar and watching the next person pop the lid without any work. 

The more logical part of Claude’s brain reminded him that comparing Byleth to a jar with a stuck top that needed opening probably wasn’t the most considerate thing, and definitely wasn’t helping his case. 

What he was really trying to argue was that although Teach’s emotions weren’t often outwardly displayed, he knew they could run as deep as anyone else’s. Claude knew how measureless her strength was, and he knew they could depend on one another both in and outside of battle. Someone who had only just met her couldn’t make those kinds of claims, and couldn't just effortlessly forge a similar connection.

Admittedly, he was still training his mind not to second-guess that she was someone he could trust, someone whose strength he could count on, but Claude knew that beyond his doubt she was a reliable ally. She was even someone he could see himself sharing his dreams with. 

So was that at the root of these feelings? Was it that part of him that wanted to see Teach divide mountains with that new sword of hers, afraid her allegiance would be stolen to the underground? They had only just met, but Yuri already seemed comfortable calling on Byleth to aid him. Would he integrate her into his own plans, leaving her no room to join Claude in his ambitions? 

There was _some_ worry in that thought. After all, she was already becoming essential to his vision of how he would unite the world. Only a few moons, and already, her mere presence in his life was having him rescript his entire strategy to include her. 

But Claude could tell that what he was feeling wasn’t worry for the future as much as it was discomfort in the present. He hadn’t even thought to consider how Teach and Yuri’s connection would impact the grand scheme of things until he was grasping for justification to be upset. Teach was an ally, and if Yuri was an ally to Teach, then this was just a simple expansion of contacts, if anything. Right? In the now, as childish as it felt to admit, he was just feeling somewhat deprived of attention. 

As if he had some sort of claim to her attention.

_Okay Claude, not the time for self-pity._ He’d have something else to focus on soon enough anyway, he only had a bit more winding through this maze of passageways to arrive at the library-

Two distinct sets of footsteps ahead halted his walk. Claude could hear them, one set sure and consistent, and another set, gliding and calculated but easy to miss. 

“Hey, friend.”

That voice… that had to be Yuri, of all people. Who could he be talking to?

Reaching the intersection at the end of the hall, Claude glanced around the turn of the passageway. Right around the bend was Yuri, who had just caught the attention of Teach. 

“Let’s not deny that there’s a connection between us. How about you and me have ourselves a little date, huh?”

Wait, what? Yuri wanted to take _Teach_ on a date? What kind of time was this to be asking _anyone_ on a date? 

Claude quickly pulled himself back against the wall and out of their sight. Surely this had to be a bother for Byleth... Maybe he could step in and provide her an easy escape?

“You’re smiling with your mouth but not your eyes…” Teach finally spoke, as if she could see right through Yuri.

Ha! Claude knew Teach was adept at coming up with observant and cooly unaffected responses, but that one said she wasn’t going to be easily fooled by the trickster. All the same, Claude was still feeling the urge to disrupt their conversation. But did he really want to swoop in to heroically offer her a way out, or was he just wanting to steal some attention back for himself?

Hold on. Regardless of intention, was he really about to intervene and start some sort of confrontation? Cutting in could easily come off as unusually defensive of him, if not plain possessive. It’s not like he was aiming to make new enemies just because he was feeling a little brushed aside. 

Still, how easy would it be to just walk up and tease them over this little flirting session… 

Was that even what this was?

Yuri was just acting overly familiar, which in itself wasn’t much of an issue, and Claude couldn’t find anything inherently wrong with Yuri asking Teach on a date. She didn’t even sound too receptive to begin with. So why did it bother him so much? 

“Ha! It only happens when I’m being a little greedy.”

Oh wow. Okay. Was that counter supposed to sound as filthy as it did? 

Would walking up there and simply breaking their conversation do the trick? Maybe he could invite Teach to scrounge through the library with him, or pull Yuri aside to ask him one of a thousand questions he had for him.

Claude held himself back. This could be a valuable discussion to listen in on, even if it was difficult to listen to without interfering. Why was he ready to put aside his curiosity just to create a barrier between the two of them? Since when did he start to value stealing her attention over an opportunity to collect some useful information? He needed to pull himself together, give it an eye-roll and just stay put. 

“When the bell strikes midnight, meet me out front of the Holy Mausoleum. My only condition is that you arrive promptly after midnight- and not a moment before. What say you?”

The Holy Mausoleum? That didn’t exactly strike Claude as a go-to spot for a date. And such specific timing… What did Yuri have planned? 

“Isn’t it forbidden to enter the Holy Mausoleum?”

A good point... Claude wondered if Teach was bringing up that fact as a way to get out of the plan being made. He couldn’t hear any uneasiness in her voice, so... probably not.

“All will be revealed when you arrive.”

Well that wasn’t at all enigmatic. _Real shady, Yuri._ At this point, Claude was sure Yuri had something _other_ than a real date in mind. _But what?_ During their time here in Abyss, he’s felt upstaged, and now, quite frankly, a little out-schemed by the cunning basement-dweller. 

“Nobles have nearly killed one another fighting for my affections, you know.” Claude struggled to identify the tone in Yuri’s voice. It was almost provocative. Whatever it was, he didn’t like it.

Was that statement supposed to impress her? Hearing Yuri make such open advances on Teach was definitely rousing something within him, although Claude couldn’t quite say what. 

Claude had a feeling that, like himself, Yuri had no hesitation using his charm to his advantage, but he really hadn’t taken Yuri for a braggart. Not to mention this was heading into the territory of downright Sylvainish behavior. There was no way this could really be taking place just around the corner, no way Yuri was speaking to Teach so brazenly. Claude couldn’t begin to imagine being this forward. 

“Perhaps you won’t get all you want out of me, heh, but I’ll promise you a fun time regardless.”

Huh. Damn. Claude would say it takes a lot to shock him in terms of lewd speech. Propriety was never much of a concern of his. But this? This was just getting plain indecent, and there was no way it was only in his head. No doubt Lorenz would be scandalized to the point of pearl-clutching, and Seteth would have outright burst into flames by now, but if anyone else overheard this exchange their eyebrows would be raised just as high as Claude’s own. 

What’s worse, although he couldn’t look around the corner without the risk of revealing his position to confirm it, he didn’t hear Teach shutting down Yuri’s promise of a fun time. 

_Stay out of it, Claude._

“It’s settled. I’ll see you tomorrow night, friend. Don’t stand me up.”

_Had she actually agreed to it?_ Well, no time to think on that yet, it sounded like the conversation he had stumbled across was coming to a close. Claude figured it would be best to quietly make his retreat before he was found out.

Trying his best to stay silent as he crept away with evened breath and step, Claude’s thoughts couldn’t be pulled far from that exchange. The whole thing had been suspect, but Claude didn’t find his mind being drawn to whatever trickery Yuri was involving Teach in. Instead, he was fixed on a word. 

“Friend”, always “friend” with that guy. The way Yuri said it truly rattled him. Claude thought it sounded about as genuine as his suggestion of a date. It was offensively empty.

Yet a part of Claude knew he was feeling resentful because he wanted nothing more than to call her the same. 

Claude knew with everything in him that although they had only known each other for a few short moons, he could call Byleth a friend. Claude envied the way the word rolled so easily off Yuri’s tongue, as if it had no attached meaning, like it were any other word. 

Who was he to call Byleth a friend? Sure, they had built up a working relationship over their time in Abyss, but Yuri couldn’t claim to know the first thing about her, and now he was tossing around, if not outright feigning an interest in dating her?

But Claude, he could call her that genuinely… if only he could say it. Maybe not now, but someday. Someday he would break down that wall within himself, and with confidence, call her his friend.

For now, he would just have to trust that she knew.

**Author's Note:**

> You know later when Yuri engages in some staged betrayal and Byleth has to get everyone back in the loop? In the context of this fic Claude just gives a fake gasp at the news that there was a plan
> 
> Follow me on Twitter @[Pepper_Poppers](https://twitter.com/Pepper_Poppers) (18+ only!) for previews and to give input on new stuff- I'll have polls up where you can tell me what you want to see next! (also help me realize my dream of not having my first followers be bots lmao)


End file.
